S 7454: Requires school districts to provide instructional programming and services in reading and literacy which are evidence based and aligned with state standards; requires teachers in grades pre-K through five to attend professional development courses in reading education.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 7454 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE April 16, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sens. HOYLMAN-SIGAL, GALLIVAN, JACKSON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Education AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to early literacy educa- tion The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "right to 2 read act". 3 § 2. The education law is amended by adding a new section 819 to read 4 as follows: 5 § 819. Early literacy education. 1. For purposes of this section, the 6 following terms shall have the following meanings: 7 (a) "Evidence-based" means the instruction or item described is based 8 on rigorous, reliable, trustworthy and valid scientific evidence and has 9 demonstrated a record of success in addressing students' reading compe- 10 tency in the areas of phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary develop- 11 ment, reading fluency and comprehension, including background knowledge 12 oral language and writing. 13 (b) "Phonemic awareness" means the ability to notice, think about and 14 manipulate individual sounds in spoken syllables and words. 15 (c) "Vocabulary development" means the process of acquiring new words. 16 "Vocabulary development" includes improving all areas of communication, 17 including listening, speaking, reading and writing which is directly 18 related to school achievement and is a strong predictor for reading 19 success. 20 (d) "Reading fluency" means the ability to read words, phrases and 21 sentences accurately, at an appropriate speed, and with expression. 22 (e) "Reading comprehension" means a function of word recognition 23 skills and language comprehension skills and shall include having suffi- 24 cient background information and vocabulary in order for the reader to EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD00258-01-5 
 S. 7454 2 1 understand the words in front of them. "Reading comprehension" also 2 includes the active process that requires intentional thinking during 3 which meaning is constructed through interactions between the text and 4 reader. Comprehension skills are taught explicitly by demonstrating, 5 explaining, modeling and implementing specific cognitive strategies to 6 help beginning readers derive meaning through intentional, problem-solv- 7 ing thinking processes. 8 (f) "Three-cueing", or "meaning structure visual" (MSV) means a method 9 that teaches students to use meaning, structure and syntax, and visual 10 cues when attempting to read an unknown word. 11 (g) "Cultural responsiveness" means alignment with the New York state 12 culturally-responsive sustaining education (CRSE) framework. 13 (h) "Culturally-responsive sustaining education (CRSE) framework" 14 means a framework that helps educators create student-centered learning 15 environments that: affirm racial, linguistic and cultural identities; 16 prepare students for rigor and independent learning, develop students' 17 abilities to connect across lines of difference; elevate historically 18 marginalized voices; and empower students as agents of social change. 19 2. Commencing the school year following the publication of the 20 approved instructional programming as set forth in subdivision five of 21 this section, each school district shall provide all students in pre- 22 kindergarten through fifth grade programming and services necessary to 23 ensure to the greatest extent possible that students, as they progress 24 through pre-kindergarten, kingdergarten, first, second, third, fourth 25 and fifth grades develop the necessary foundational reading skills to 26 enable them to master the academic standards and expectations applicable 27 to the sixth grade curriculum and beyond. The instructional programming 28 and services for teaching students to read must be evidence-based and 29 scientifically-based, must focus on reading competency in the areas of 30 phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary development, reading fluency, 31 comprehension, including background knowledge, oral language and writ- 32 ing, oral skill development, and must align with CRSE framework. 33 Districts shall ensure that all early literacy programming and services 34 are part of an aligned and coherent plan designed to improve student 35 reading outcomes in grades pre-kindergarten through five. 36 3. Commencing the school year following the publication of the 37 approved professional development programs as set forth in subdivision 38 seven of this section, every school district shall ensure that all 39 teachers employed to teach pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, first, 40 second, third, fourth and fifth grades, including teachers with multiple 41 subject and education specialist teaching credentials, possess adequate 42 capabilities to teach literacy using evidence-based instruction. Teach- 43 ers employed by a district before or on the effective date of this 44 section may meet this requirement by presenting evidence of their profi- 45 ciency in reading instruction through completion of professional learn- 46 ing courses including, but not limited to, evidence-based means of 47 teaching foundational reading skills in print concepts, phonological 48 awareness, phonics and word recognition, comprehension and supporting 49 reading fluency for all pupils, including establishing tiered supports 50 for students with reading difficulties including those with character- 51 istics of dyslexia and dysgraphia, English learners and students with 52 exceptional needs. Teachers employed by a district after the effective 53 date of this section shall meet this requirement by successfully 54 completing at least thirty-five hours of evidence-based training in 55 reading instruction in accordance with subdivision seven of this 56 section. Alternatively, current and future educators can provide 
 S. 7454 3 1 evidence that their teacher preparation program adequately covered all 2 of these topics during their enrollment. To the extent possible, school 3 leaders of elementary schools should also meet the requirements of this 4 section. 5 4. The department shall provide grants to BOCES and/or school 6 districts to hire onsite literacy coaches trained in the science of 7 reading, focusing on high need districts with at least seventy-five 8 percent of third graders reading below proficiency based on the two 9 thousand twenty-four--two thousand twenty-five New York state English 10 language arts assessment. 11 5. Following consultation with the city school districts of the 12 cities of New York, Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, and Yonkers, the 13 department shall develop a list of approved, evidence-based curricula 14 that meets the definition set forth in paragraph (a) of subdivision one 15 of this section. Such list shall be posted on the department's website 16 and shall at a minimum be updated annually. Such list shall not include 17 instructional programming or materials that employ three-cueing or mean- 18 ing structure visual (MSV). Approved curricula shall at a minimum: 19 (a) have been proven to accelerate student progress in attaining read- 20 ing competency; 21 (b) provide explicit and systematic skill development in the areas of 22 phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary development, comprehension and 23 reading fluency, including oral skill development; 24 (c) be evidence-based and be aligned with the preschool through 25 elementary and secondary education standards for reading adopted by the 26 department; 27 (d) include evidence-based valid and reliable assessments that provide 28 initial and ongoing analysis of a student's progress in attaining read- 29 ing competency at least three times per year, beginning in kindergarten; 30 and 31 (e) include texts on core academic content to assist students in main- 32 taining or meeting grade-appropriate proficiency levels in academic 33 subjects in addition to reading, while ensuring alignment with the 34 state's CRSE framework. 35 6. The department shall develop a competitive grant program that 36 allows districts to replace non-evidence-based curricula with curricula 37 from the approved department list of evidence-based curricula. Funds 38 from this grant may be used to provide professional learning for educa- 39 tors to effectively implement the new evidence-based curricula. 40 7. (a) The department shall develop a list of approved professional 41 development programs that are evidence-based and provide opportunities 42 for practical application of evidence-based literacy instruction in the 43 classroom. Programs should address significant reading deficiencies and 44 apply intervention strategies for struggling students including students 45 with characteristics of dyslexia and dysgraphia, in addition to teaching 46 general, evidence-based literacy instructional approaches for all 47 students. The department shall include on such list the approved profes- 48 sional development programs that are available online. Such list shall 49 be posted on the department's website and shall at a minimum be updated 50 annually. The department shall ensure that each professional development 51 program included on such list: 52 (i) is focused on or aligns with the science of reading, and is 53 comprehensive and research-based, including the following: 54 (1) the study of organized, systematic, explicit skills including 55 phonemic awareness, direct, systematic, explicit phonics, and decoding 56 strategies; 
 S. 7454 4 1 (2) a strong literature, language and comprehension component encom- 2 passing both oral and written language; 3 (3) ongoing screening techniques to inform teaching; 4 (4) early intervention measures; and 5 (5) guided practice in a clinical setting; 6 (ii) includes rigorous evaluations of learning both throughout and at 7 the conclusion of the course, which a participant must pass to success- 8 fully complete the course; and 9 (iii) aligns with the approved instructional programming published in 10 accordance with subdivision five of this section. 11 (b) For purposes of this subdivision, "direct, systematic, explicit 12 phonics" means phonemic awareness, spelling patterns, the direct 13 instruction of sound/symbol codes and practice in connected text, and 14 the relationship of direct, systematic, explicit phonics. 15 8. (a) Every school district, at least three times per year, shall 16 give the parent or guardian of each student in pre-kindergarten through 17 grade five a progress report about such student's literacy progress. For 18 pre-kindergarten students, such report shall include an assessment of 19 cognitive abilities, including executive function, and social-emotional 20 learning. For kindergarten through grade five, such progress report 21 shall include information about the following: 22 (i) the student's reading proficiency as measured by district reading 23 assessments and screeners; 24 (ii) information about the literacy programming and services being 25 provided to the student, including curriculum; and 26 (iii) list of evidence-based home and community resources that fami- 27 lies and caregivers can use to support their child's reading and 28 language development. 29 (b) The department shall develop a progress report template for 30 districts to meet the requirements set forth pursuant to this subdivi- 31 sion. 32 9. (a) By September fifteenth of the school year subsequent to the 33 school year school districts are required to commence providing the 34 programming and services set forth in subdivision two of this section, 35 and on an annual basis thereafter, the commissioner shall submit a 36 report to the legislative committees with jurisdiction over pre-kinder- 37 garten through grade twelve education summarizing, at minimum, the 38 state's performance on each of the following metrics: 39 (i) students' literacy and reading progression using state growth 40 measures. The commissioner shall analyze the state's progress in regard 41 to students' reading and literacy using the state's educational assess- 42 ment system. The system shall measure individual students' educational 43 growth in the area of reading based on indicators of current achievement 44 growth, and each individual student's growth must be shown relative to 45 the student's prior achievement. Indicators of achievement and prior 46 achievement shall be based on highly reliable statewide assessments. The 47 commissioner shall include aggregated data and disaggregated data show- 48 ing educational growth by school site, grade and race/ethnicity; 49 (ii) by school site and grade, the percentage of teachers required to 50 possess capabilities in research-based literacy instruction as specified 51 under subdivision three of this section that have successfully completed 52 training or otherwise demonstrated knowledge in evidence-based literacy 53 instruction; 54 (iii) by school site and grade, the names of the approved professional 55 development programs in accordance with subdivision seven of this 56 section used by teachers; and 
 S. 7454 5 1 (iv) by school site and grade, the names of the approved instructional 2 programming and supporting materials as specified under subdivision five 3 of this section that were used at the beginning and end of the school 4 year. 5 (b) The department shall publish this information on its website in a 6 clear and accessible format. 7 § 3. Section 3004 of the education law is amended by adding a new 8 subdivision 7 to read as follows: 9 7. a. The commissioner shall prescribe regulations requiring that all 10 persons applying on or after September second, two thousand twenty-six 11 for a teaching certification or license valid for service in the early 12 childhood or elementary grades shall, in addition to all the other 13 certification or licensing requirements, have completed course work or 14 training in evidence-based literacy instruction that meets the require- 15 ments set forth in subdivision seven of section eight hundred nineteen 16 of this chapter. 17 b. The commissioner shall ensure that teacher preparation insti- 18 tutions, starting in the two thousand twenty-five--two thousand twenty- 19 six academic year, include evidence-based literacy instruction that 20 meets the requirements set forth in subdivision seven of section eight 21 hundred nineteen of this chapter. 22 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.